A few years ago my street was plagued by burglaries. So I bought German Shepherd and a basketball. I named the dog "Butch" and painted a burglar's face — mask and all — on the basketball. I spent a month training Butch to attack the ball on the command Git 'im, Butch!

Then late one night, it happened. I heard the tinkle of broken glass downstairs, and Butch's ears perked up. Not wanting to alert the burglar, I whispered Git 'im, Butch! In a flash, he leapt from the bed and bolted, snarling, down the stairs.

The sounds that followed were horrifying. Barking, ripping, crashing, yelling...

And suddenly, silence. Tentatively, I tip-toed down the stairs, not sure if I was ready to see the carnage. Butch was sitting in the middle of the dining room, looking very proud. And strewn all around the floor were the shredded remains of that basketball.

Xplain's use of MacNews, AppleCentral and AppleExpo are not affiliated with Apple, Inc. MacTech is a registered trademark of Xplain Corporation. AppleCentral, MacNews, Xplain, "The journal of Apple technology", Apple Expo, Explain It, MacDev, MacDev-1, THINK Reference, NetProfessional, MacTech Central, MacTech Domains, MacForge, and the MacTutorMan are trademarks or service marks of Xplain Corp. Sprocket is a registered trademark of eSprocket Corp. Other trademarks and copyrights appearing in this printing or software remain the property of their respective holders.

All contents are Copyright 1984-2010 by Xplain Corporation. All rights reserved. Theme designed by Icreon.